AG says Haim obtained 553 pills before death

April 6, 2010 12:00:00 AM PDT

By Leanne Suter

LOS ANGELES --

California Attorney General Jerry Brown says actor Corey Haim obtained more than 550 prescription pills illegally in the three months before his death.The state attorney general says that actor Corey Haim is the "poster child" for doctor shopping, going from physician to physician for pain medication prescriptions and getting hundreds of pills in a matter of weeks.

"Corey Haim actually obtained 553 dangerous drugs just this year, and as late as five days before he died," said California Attorney General Jerry Brown.

Brown says Haim went to several different doctors and seven different pharmacies to fill the prescriptions for Vicodin, Valium and Xanax.

The 38-year-old was found dead in his mother's apartment in Universal City on March 10. The coroner's office is still waiting for toxicology tests to determine how the child star died.

Investigators with the Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement say Haim was addicted to pain killers and used his acting skills to get the prescriptions.

"He had multiple accusations that he was making, as far as injuries to parts of his body and also some depression issues," said Sara Simpson, Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement.

Haim's name first came up in connection with the prescription drug fraud ring. Investigators quickly learned of his dangerous habit of "doctor shopping."

"We don't know exactly how he died, but we know that he had hundreds and hundreds of prescriptions taken very shortly before he died," said Brown. "He abused this process in a way that others have. This is an epidemic."

Brown hopes Haim's tragic story will help educate the public about the growing problem of prescription drug abuse.

The actor struggled with drugs throughout his life. He was also suffering from flulike symptoms before his death.

Haim was the star of 1980s films such as "The Lost Boys" and "License to Drive."